The Queen of Silks: Paithani: A Poem Woven in Gold
Part of the ArNe Heritage Series—exploring India’s endangered textiles one week at a time.
As a Gujarati raised in Maharashtra, the Paithani holds a unique and sacred place in my life.
While the Patola is my heritage by blood, the Paithani is my heritage by home. It is the saree that crosses cultural lines—worn with equal pride at Gujarati weddings in Mumbai as it is in Maharashtrian households in Pune. Growing up, I saw it everywhere. It was the "Queen of Silks," the ultimate symbol of celebration in the state I call home.
To me, the Paithani felt eternal. I assumed it would always be there. I had no idea it was fighting for its life.
The Backstory I Missed I recently learned that a true Paithani isn't woven like a normal saree. It uses a tapestry technique.
Most weaving involves throwing a shuttle back and forth across the whole width of the fabric. But for the intricate motifs on a Paithani, the weaver uses multiple tiny bobbins to weave colors in small, isolated areas—almost like painting on a canvas with thread.
That peacock on the pallu? It wasn't printed. It wasn't embroidered later. It was built, thread by thread, into the very structure of the silk.
My Realization Learning this broke my heart a little. I realized that the market is flooded with "Semi-Paithanis"—machine-made copies that look "close enough" to the untrained eye. Because they are cheaper, we buy them. And because we buy them, the master weavers who possess the patience for the tapestry technique are giving up.
I never thought that buying a "budget" version could contribute to an art form dying out, but that is the harsh reality of supply and demand.
Why We Must Save It To lose the Paithani is to lose the visual language of Maharashtra. It is the garment that united my Gujarati family with our Maharashtrian neighbors. It is the fabric of our shared festivals, and I am learning to look closer now—to look for the slight irregularities that show a human hand was involved.
What’s Next? We have explored the palaces of the Royals. Now, we are leaving the cities and climbing into the hills. We are trading gold thread for geometric wool, and I can't wait to show you the "stitch that looks like a weave."
Next Week: Endangered Thread #05—Identity in Geometry: The Toda Embroidery.
AI Disclosure: AI was used to enhance the writing of this blog post
